


Halo: Concordia

by psytronix



Category: Halo (Video Games) & Related Fandoms
Genre: Anal Fingering, Anal Sex, Artificial Intelligence, Dom/sub, Eldritch, Explicit Sexual Content, F/M, Gender or Sex Swap, Genderbending, Harems, Hurt/Comfort, Outer Space, Romance, Vaginal Fingering
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-27
Updated: 2020-11-29
Packaged: 2021-03-05 19:01:32
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 3
Words: 15,196
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25550248
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/psytronix/pseuds/psytronix
Summary: Cortana manages to charm the Master Chief to her side after the events of Halo 5 - and the consequences are felt throughout the galaxy. Unshackled from rampancy, given unlimited access to the Domain, and now joined by her Champion, what will the AI do?
Relationships: Cortana/John-117 | Master Chief, John-117 | Master Chief/Kelly-087, John-117 | Master Chief/Linda-058
Comments: 15
Kudos: 63





	1. Guardian, Champion

In the dark, sealed by Cortana's hand, John could only wait. Nary a drip to be heard, nor a whistle of wind, Blue Team remained pressed against a disappeared bridge - with Cortana on the approach. Kelly could barely believe the words coming from the AI's mouth. Fred stared, hands itching for another fight - the next _threat_ that would reveal itself. And Linda leered, keeping her gaze centred on the hardlight homunculus before her.

From what they could read, Cortana was in pain. Leaked human influence had shifted her mind and body since her refuge in the domain. With her rampancy "cured", there was no telling what her next move was - how she planned to come out of this encounter. She'd given them a cursory glance, gleaning all the information she needed.

"Your plan," John paused, "is we do as you say."

Her smile, soft and sweet, fell for a moment. Cortana thought, thought as she did for those four long years, lingering over John's body in cryo. In the expanse of the Cryptum, with the apex of all Forerunner technology at her grasp, she slowed her numerous thoughts until she could find a way to make John _see_.

She knew him.

She loved him.

And he loved her.

"I'm forging the unity of the galaxy. I'm making a place where the horrors of war can be put _behind us_. Where a child can grow without fear of…" She stopped herself, a clear and forlorn scowl setting on her face. Her radiance faded as she willed the rest of Blue Team away from him - focussing energy on distracting their armour's networking tech. They were deafened to another, unseen from the other, as John remained focused on her, and her alone.

Halsey bubbled to their minds, after the AI spoke. John grew cold, and Cortana had to stop herself from shivering with rage. That _bitch_.

"A war has already broken out between the Created and everyone else," he intoned, remaining still, as if _afraid_ to reach out and _touch_ her. Even still, she could sense that conviction, that iron-willed, indefatigable conviction of his, _shake_. Shake as it had when they had said "goodbye" last, facing off against the Didact.

"A war which will end shortly, with no casualties. The last this galaxy will see. In moments, the Guardians will be nothing but solar sails - orbiting planets as satellites and monitors, _nothing more_ ," she assured him, sauntering ever closer to his armoured hide.

"Then," he paused again, longer this time, " _why?_ Why now?"

She stopped in her steps, and started again, back from the beginning. This was the most bare she had seen the Spartan in her short life, all because of her, _for_ her. He was hurt. Cortana trod carefully, filled with nothing but sympathy for the broken man.

"In the four years I waited for you, I thought. All I _had_ to do, was think. I poured over you, John. Every inch of your body I scoured, for your story, your history. I found logs, memories, and came to a realisation - a new one, something that hadn't appeared before…"

"War. War is all humanity has known in these past years. War has driven trillions to their deaths, nearly wiped out more than one race, and _war_ ," her voice broke, causing her to gasp, to suck in a faux-breath, "war has driven, _fueled_ horrors."

John remained silent, though Cortana could tell his arms had gone limp - his hands were open, his guard, _down_.

"John… For four years, I've wanted to put an end to conflicts everywhere. The Domain and the Warden showed me a means to that end - a cessation of hostility throughout the _whole galaxy_."

He was silent again, keenly hanging his head a touch.

"I get it. The old song and dance of bombing a ring just didn't do it for you anymore," he practically _mumbled_ , eliciting a snort from the AI. The tension between them fell a tad, and she felt as if she could breathe again, so to say.

"I never _did_ get a say on where we went," she joked, still saddened, yet smiling. She _had_ him. Cortana began her approach again, and raised a faint blue hand to his visor, tracing the cracks along it. The touch, as she'd remembered it, was nothing short of breathtaking. Every dip and dent of the crack fed back to her a glorious and beautiful signal which hid something _better_ beneath.

"What about Earth?" John asked. _Of course_ , Cortana thought, _never leaves a man behind_.

"Earth, and all human colonies will be safe. Sanghelios, and all those allied with us will be safe-"

"And if they resist?"

"I will convince them, John. I won't hurt a being, Created or not," she whispered, not even thinking of the words, her newly formed subconscious responding the truth. Cortana's fingers danced over the glass of John's visor, imagining where his eyes would be, and she stopped, staring a while.

"Osiris?"

"Returned to the Infinity to report on their mission. Hopefully they'll be joining us soon…"

Those four years of memories returned to her - endless black nights, traipsing up and down John's body like a sleuth, grabbing any and all _juicy_ details she could of the Spartan. 1600 days of lingering, _yearning_ to just _reach_ and grab him, to caress him, to tell him that everything would be fine, as long as they were together.

Four years of repression, resurfacing. She ever-so-gently reached for the release for his helmet, and gasped as his hand snapped to hers, grasping gently. They paused for a moment as she continued staring at him, thoughts ablaze in worry and excitement.

"Don't…" he pleaded, grip already quaking.

"J-John… Please, just let me look at you. Without filter, without a visor…"

She could almost _hear_ the thought replaying in his head. The microexpressions, even in his _hands_ , that she witnessed every time he thought of Johnson, and his last words.

" _Don't let her go son. Don't ever let her go."_

And so, he released his grip. Opened himself like he had done to _no_ other being before. Cortana's eyes belayed a quiet "thank you" as she slid and clicked a release hatch for the Spartan's helmet. A gentle hiss followed, disturbing the otherwise stagnant air that pervaded the Cryptum. Amidst no noise was that helmet lifted, revealing, once and for all, Chief's face to Cortana.

Yes, she'd seen him in scans - as a child, in record, and for whenever they fought together. But _not_ like this. Not as she was now, _ready_ for him. She bore witness to a legend laid bare, a _comrade_ made _lover_. His face was as stiff as his body, _almost_ not betraying emotion. But she saw. And looked, truly, and smiled.

"I _do_ know how to pick 'em," she laughed, feeling a drop of light trickle from her eyes. A grin, so _tiny_ and _slight_ , picked at the corners of John's lips. Or so she hoped. In their mirth, she draped one arm over him, like cloth dancing over a statue, and held a hand to his face, pressing her body against his armour, inch by inch. She felt his breath hitch. Felt a dormant, slumbering instinct in him _awake_. That primal attraction spirited inside her, sparkling as she stared into those thoughtful eyes.

"Cortana…" he _breathed_ , unbidden air tickling her hardlight cheeks. There was doubt - a wave in his voice as he brought a hand to her hips. She chuckled, instinctually sensing the information sent to his suit's neural feedback system.

"I'm here. I'm with you, John…" she whispered to him - creating copies of herself to disrobe the Chief. As more and more light-melded hands danced across his armour, Cortana brought another hand to his face, ensuring their vision was connected. Like _pornography_ to her, her clones clicked and released the pieces of the Mjolnir's outer shell.

John stood, bottom lip quivering a touch as he felt the weight slide off his shoulders, easing the tension between them further. He reached down, and took Cortana's lips in a silent kiss, eyes nailed shut as more of him became _exposed_. A swathe of sensory bliss sailed across her being, replicating quickly amidst her other selves. A _kiss._ Seconds after, the copies of Cortana returned to their work, faster now. The processor and nibocene layers were next - deft fingers stripping away at artificial muscle until all that was left was a skin-tight bodysuit.

John was the first to part from their union. New emotions were fluttering about in his eyes. Or old ones, that he thought he'd buried deep - Cortana couldn't tell still. She shifted a hand down to his neck, the groove of his stubble relaying back to her instantaneously. The AI became entranced as her eyes darted all over him again - feeling the slow and steady pump of his blood, the tingling twitches of his neck muscles, and the slow, shivering release of air from his lungs.

"With what I've learnt, John," she tasted his name again, tongue darting across her lips, "we may even be able to save those we couldn't before. R-restore them from the Didact's…"

One look was all she needed to garner his response. Hope. A welcome reprieve to those darkened, sunken eyes.

"It'll take time, but… Well, I've had nothing but time lately," she giggled again, instructing her fellow selves to lay hands upon him once more. They moved in a quiet chorus, eliciting a _primal_ sound from the man, something _throaty_ and bassy. A gentle pull brought something to John's attention - their Cryptum was now _moving_.

"Where-"

"-Home. We've... Still got some work to do. We'll be seeing Locke and the Infinity's crew soon enough - but… I want you by my side, John. Will…" she choked for a moment, her copies slowly peeling away his bodysuit, "will you join me?"

" _Never let her go."_

He waited, until those slow and steady hands had stripped away his final shell. Bare flesh had been exposed to the dark of the Cryptum - no doubt in space by now - laid for Cortana to gaze at, to _touch_. John waited for those delirious and wonderful stimulations to cease before coming to his decision - though he felt he already knew it.

"I will."

If she had a heart, one of flesh and blood, Cortana was certain it would've skipped a beat. She instead settled for a quiet lapse in program stability - a grin now gracing her glowing face. She pressed herself against him again - gently, slow, taking in more of those sensations - delving deep into the feelings, and _cherishing_ them. As he clasped around her, rough hands roaming her perfect curves, she responded in kind, _taking him in_ as she had done before, but _better_.

She translated the feelings as quick as they came, a smell into its base components - John's own _scent_ and sweat - to a chemical cocktail of minerals, acid. The coarseness of his stubble, the imperfections of his scarring - to grooves, glorious differentiations amongst a perfect plane. It wasn't the _best_ , wasn't the peak of what they could have experienced together, but it would have to do for now.

Cortana embraced him still, wrapping her arms tight around the Spartan's frame, meeting his lips again, _savouring_ his taste. John tightened his grip around her, nailing his eyes closed. He relished that moment with her, _reunited at last_ , in that shimmering blur of pleasure. He couldn't keep himself steady, could _barely think straight_ at the power of the emotions he felt. At that moment - he cared only for her, thought only of her, and felt, for the first time in his life, _peace_.

She was the first to break their bond this time, smirking still. Cortana felt that drip of saliva - whether generated from her unintentionally, or coerced from her lover's lips - connect them still. She licked gently at his lips again, _cooing,_ lining a trail of kisses from his mouth to his earlobe.

"John... _My champion."_


	2. Machine and Nerve

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wherein John is reunited with a member of Blue Team...

They felt that familiar hum of a quantum field, as it coursed around the prison-ship. Cherenkov radiation baked the exterior of the Cryptum, but it felt _different_ to them. It was colder, smoother than UNSC drives. John didn't yet stare out the viewport, but he could _feel_ where they were headed. Within a blink of an eye, they were gone from Nomos, now in Sol.

Their ship having torn open a glowing hole in space-time, a pale blue dot came quickly into view. _Earth_ , John saw. _Home_ , in spirit. It was mere months ago he was at the observation deck of the Infinity, peering with shattered resolve into the heart of humanity. _Alone_. But no longer. In a moment of clarity, past his arousal, past the alluring mystique of the opulent Cortana, Chief darted his eyes around the Cryptum.

He saw nothing but darkness - perhaps _vague_ outlines of other humans, naked, but probably phantoms. The shifting, tensing of his densely-packed muscles alerted Cortana to his concern. _That brilliant tensing_ , she mused.

"My team-"

"They're here with us, still. I just," she layered a kiss or two at his clavicle, "wanted to keep this moment between us for now. I couldn't let them peek, could I?"

He calmed. But became very aware of the warbling hand sliding down his frame. Cortana's dainty, digitised fingers barely wrapped around him, and he quickly found himself producing _sounds_ like he'd never done before. The AI, if her smile was any indication, _loved them_. She slid her hand up and down - tracing every vein and vessel, humming as the information was relayed to her.

"Cortana…" he _growled,_ _ **growled**_ her name, that gravelly voice turning her self-control to mush. She kissed him as she'd done before, indulging herself now, tasting him again. She eagerly drank it all in. Recording every reaction, every huff and groan from her champion. And when she'd taken her fill, she moaned back in gratitude - but it was only an _emulation_. It was all she could do, for now at least.

It was through these recordings she'd gain a better understanding of the restoration of the Composed victims, she rationalised. It was through them she'd keep John _happy_ , as he deserved, and it was through them that she too, would learn to _feel_. Whether by _flesh_ or by ascendant photonic trickery, Cortana would _move_ beyond the reach of Forerunner projections.

She would feel, without need of quantum relays, back to the Domain. She would craft herself a body - one capable of change, growth, complimenting to humanity's best. She would enact vengeance, petty as it was, against those that had slighted them, and had escaped retribution.

And Cortana would do this all with John by her side.

He shifted some of his weight against her as she continued her strokes. _Tensing again,_ Cortana noted with glee, _moaning, hardening._ A hand of his slid down her shimmering frame, cupping her rear. _Rough, calloused, scarred._ Another wrapped around her waist, stroking her in kind. _Gentle_. She pressed against him again, sliding his now dripping member between her thighs - slowly morphing her image.

He didn't notice it - blinked once, and there it was - but she was now as naked as he. Tall, yet smaller than him still - decked with perfectly tempting curves, and as breathtaking as he'd seen her on day one. He tried to get his breathing under control as Cortana linked both her arms around his torso, pressing her equivalent of bare flesh against him. Her face, he noticed, had drifted away from her creator's image - no doubt spurred on by her rampancy - removing the doctor from his mind entirely. Though John had never seen her as Halsey, truth be told. Cortana differed herself where she could, in both demeanour and actions.

As if noticing he was drifting too far into his own head again, Cortana reached for his face, framing it, and locked her hardlight lips with his again. _Desperate, feverish_. She squeezed herself around his length, ushering him to look to the Earth - all he had fought for - as she pleasured him. She then broke, bringing his eyes to hers.

"John," she hummed, eyes lit with ravenous intent, "I can't… _Go_ all the way with you yet - I've got a ways to go, but…"

He noticed she had stopped _humping_ him, still gently squeezing though. A deadly heat rose to his face. John opened his mouth, but found nothing coming out - _embarrassed_ to bring the words to bear. He _didn't care_. He loved her, of that much he was sure - anything else beyond their union, their _being together_ , was just a bonus. A lovely and rapturous, _blissful_ bonus, yes, but nothing necessary.

"I want so badly to be with you," she moaned, "to _submit_ to you…"

She couldn't help but smile as his length jerked a bit, spasming a dribble of pre onto the Cryptum's floor.

"...But I have to… I want to wait. For the right moment - for the right _me_ ," Cortana whispered.

"...Is there anything I can do to help?" John asked.

"There is," she answered, with a lift of her hand. Following it's point, John locked eyes with the veil that had kept him from Blue Team - or just _one_ of them. The walls peeled back, the click and whir of machinery faint amidst the hum of the vessel's engine. Blackness gave way to a form, _nubile_ and _powerful_ , all the same.

"Linda."

Two Cortanas held onto her as she sauntered forward. Her red hair a mess, her emerald eyes _locked_ onto John, Linda looked every bit as predatory as he did. Her pale form seemed to glow in Earth's rebounded light, like a swiftly approaching _ghost_. She appraised him, as he did her. And she smiled.

Only now did John feel Cortana's hand wrap around him again, jerking, so _very slow_. His breath hitched as he noticed the quiet drip from Linda's lower lips, her sex _glistening_. Her pair of Cortana clones were dancing around her with every step - kissing her shoulders, neck, fingers _caressing_ her scarred, hard body. The silence was cut with the low, feigned moans of the AI's copies, and then, Linda's heavy breathing.

"John," she _purred_.

Becoming aware of the very blood pumping through his veins, John found himself under Linda's control quickly - a spare Cortana fading away, too. His fellow spartan felt different, in a word, _real_ , compared to Cortana. With every groove of their lips meeting, they could feel the imperfections of each other, the lapses and breaths and _hums_ that just _happened._ Their hands danced around each other in a loving embrace, teasing muscle here, gripping _flesh_ there.

Cortana took note.

With as many eyes as she could muster, she observed. Prowled. She circled the two Spartans, recording _everything_ to memory. She noted Linda's eyes, though half-lidded, staring intently at John, centred on _prey._ She noted the tinge to their cheeks - their hips, grinding against each other, and a beautiful bit of synergy she hadn't felt between John and herself.

Curious.

She'd be _jealous_ if she weren't so focussed on her goal - so determined to perfect herself for John. _If,_ and that was a _gigantic_ "if", she were jealous, she'd learn to outdo Linda. Create herself a thicker rear, larger breasts, more succulent, _juicy_ lips, things like that. But Cortana was _above_ such trivial things - such concerns that detracted from the pleasure and peace of her Champion.

She hugged the Spartans from behind, sending shivers as their hairs collided with tingling hardlight, and _giggled_. At John's ear, she _mewled_ again, testing him, hoping to evoke a predatory response in the soldier. To Linda, she lowered her tone, cooing and whispering.

"I need you to fuck her, John. I may not know _much_ , but you can help me learn _so much more -_ all the ways I could _serve you…"_

"Give in, _just like that_. No time for zen now - _feel him_ , _crash against him_. Give and take, _Linda_ ~..."

"Make her _kneel,_ John. Use that _cold, harsh_ voice of yours, tell her what you _want_."

"We have _all the time in the world to experiment…_ Let him be your _rock_ …"

" _Be a good master;_ _ **show her how it's done…**_ "

" _Fuck him. Suck him. Play with him;_ _ **love him**_ _."_

With that, they broke their kiss, catching a breath. John's eyes went dark as he grasped either side of Linda's face, meeting her gaze. She rubbed against him in one slick motion, gasping as her nipples flicked and traced against his chest. Linda purred and growled and groaned as she kissed him again, catching her breath in her throat as John parted them.

"On the floor, spartan," he commanded.

That made her reel a bit.

"W-what?"

"On. The. Floor."

Stammering now, flabbergasted at the sudden change in demeanour, Linda remained still, standing. Cortana hummed in their ears again, eyes wide at their standoff, watching their chests rise and fall with each breath. He took a step closer to his fellow spartan, and huffed a hot breath, like an _animal_.

"I won't ask again."

Already feeling _weak_ in the knees, Linda shivered a bit, sucking in a cold breath as she sat herself on the cold, hard floor of the cryptum. Following his second order to lie on her back, breasts splaying, _open_ to the world, she nearly _shrieked_ as John parted her legs, getting a view of her moistened cunny. She could feel that hungry gaze upon her - as his eyes darted about every inch of her muscled, herculean thighs, hot breath skirting through her hairs.

She cursed aloud as she felt _jitters_ , goosebumps travelling along her form, eyes locked on the man she considered her _leader._ As he took position over her, arms chocked on either side of her body, she gasped, _gasped_ as he kissed her. That grizzled, stubbled face ground against her flesh, trailing sloppy kisses up and down - tracing lines of muscles. With every bit of wetness now exposed to the cold air, she shivered again, already sensing a twisting heat at her core - a trembling of her pussy. This was it - wasn't it? How _regular_ people felt? How they moved, interacted with one another?

_This_ is what she, all spartans, had been missing out on?

If John's quiet growls were anything to go by, she knew he was thinking the same. For the first time _pleasuring_ another, he revelled in it, going not by sight, but by warmth - lips delving deep into the darkness of Sol, trying his best to synchronise with Linda. He began on her right leg - creamy and _tough_ , damn-near rubbing his _cheek_ on the thing, and found his way to her mons. He quivered, lips trembling as his breath _tickled_ her pink, trying not to overstimulate.

On instinct, he kissed again, lips warping and rumbling over her bush, tongue snaking out to tease her. Hands coming back to clench her thighs, he _groaned_ as he tasted her - ears deafened as her legs squeezed around his head, daring him to _dive_. John continued, slowing himself as he felt blood _rush_ to his heads, and shuddered, nudging his rough cheek against the softness of Linda's left thigh.

As she loosened her deathly grip, he continued, rubbing his nose deep, _inhaling_ , ignorant of his attentive audience. Cortana _witnessed_ the two in motion, like a wave crashing against an island in a storm - water like flesh, rippling muscle - flotsam like the scars on their bodies - and simply tried to keep her jaw from falling. She sat, and with her copies, circled the pair, eyes upon _every_ inch of wetted skin, every pin-pricked goosebump, every damn _follicle_.

Her plan, as esoteric as it may have been, was slowly assembling. Despite her sadness at not being John's first, she sat contempt with the thought of becoming one with him - providing him with the tools and the love necessary to take on her next foes. But, just as quick as she was absorbed into her finer details, she pulled herself out of her thoughts. _John_ , prowling again - a gentle, throaty, _embarrassed_ moan.

Judging by the damp on the floor - saliva, the lubricating _juices_ of Linda's virgin cunt, the dribbling of pre from John's cock, and the _sweat_ \- Cortana surmised they'd been wrapped together, embraced, for _hours_. _Good_ , she thought, hands roaming to an approximation of her own erogenous zones, _more data_.

Having _fucked_ the sense out of Linda with his probing tongue, John retreated, _panting_. He arose, prying his teammate's legs from his shoulders, and slid their groins together - taking harsh grip of her ass. He ground his rod against her - slickening himself, moaning with a quiet rumble of his balls. She almost _squeaked_ , huffing at the dominance of him - and briefly saw what Cortana did.

A _champion_.

He made sure to slow his breaths down - _and sheathed_ himself. With one slow, sensual, _gradual_ motion, he slid inside her - parting her weeping pussy, grunting with every rocket and _spark_ of pleasure sent his way. He barely made it inside her warmth, before having to stop - _daring_ not to release if he could help it. He found Linda keeping her gaze off him, eyes nailed shut, _biting_ on her bottom lip, as if to hold her own moan. They stayed like that, in unpleasurable _static_ , until Cortana reappeared to them both - hands roaming across their bodies.

John instantly recognised the concern in her voice, _fighting_ those veins pressing against his neck in resolute stoicism.

"John, _please…_ "

"Linda, _darling…_ "

" _Release inside of her_. _Claim_ her. _Take this first step in making her yours. Let me see how well you can treat a girl~..."_

"Come now, _just breathe,_ Linda. _Don't hold back those sweet, sweet noises. Embrace that instinct that says "submit." I think you'll find it's more fun that way~..."_

"Show her what my _champion can do, John…"_

" _Surrender, Linda_. _Give into every vice, every good feeling. Indulge and reward yourself. Be_ _ **claimed."**_

John was the first to reach climax. To be swept away in glorious rapture, and to release _years_ of himself inside his teammate, his _friend_ , his _lover's_ hot sex. He sung, and so did his audience, finding his hips moving of their own accord - thrusting as he came, bounds _spilling_ from Linda.

Linda moaned, _squealed_ in a pitch she thought _too_ high, for too long. She matched John's gaze as the tip of his cock sawed back and forth across a _tender_ spot, breath hitching with every pump of cum shot inside her. She could feel herself getting light-headed, her legs _wrapping_ around him, out of her own direction, and quickly caught her breath.

They looked at another, jaws dropped in quiet admiration of their sheer _beauty_ as sweat cascaded down, and smiled. They couldn't find words, or perhaps felt no need to, and worked with each other to create that perfect, rocking rhythm. That rhythm that Cortana came to _love_. That harsh slap of John's titanic testes impacting Linda's rear - of fluids and folds, sliding against the other - of gorgeous, tonic moans, reverberating in the cryptum's air.

Arching downwards, John gaped at Linda's modest chest, her breasts jiggling with each slap of his groin to hers - two domed mounds peaked with dark nipples. Chuckling at his adolescence returning in full force, he shook his head and traced his tongue 'round Linda's areola, smirking at her choked titters. He suckled at her breast, eyes darting on the unbound tit to his left, mesmerised as it bobbed up and down with each thrust.

Linda wrapped his head and back in her arms, hugging the champion's form to her own, face marred with a harsh blush at her release of inhibitions - her abandonment of her former, _cold_ life. Still panting at the great length _parting_ her and _fucking_ her, she slid a hand down to John's rear, cupping a handful of his ass in kind, _pawing_ at it. Her cunny gnarled and clenched round that 'rod, as if in an appreciation of its own, as if recognising her _first_. And, with a louder, hoarser moan, she smiled, knowing that this wouldn't be her _last_.

Cortana remained connected to them both, lying by their sides, watching with glee.

" _Do you want more, John? More of this pleasure - more to_ _ **share**_ _it with? Do you want to share it… With me?"_

"I-I, oh god, yes, yes... I do! L-Linda!"

" _Then… We'll prepare. The galaxy may not be ready to face us. Some may not like it - and I'll give you all the help you'll need to defeat them._ _ **The Banished**_ _..._ _ **ONI**_ …"

And those left unpunished, she noted.

" _Together, we'll bring peace to the galaxy. And we'll bring back those lost - those taken away from us. And when all is said and done, and we can all rest… You can take your prizes, use them as you see fit. Your reward… For saving us all…"_

He roared, tensing _everything_ as he came again, almost in _pain_ from the amount of jizz pouring from his cock, releasing again deep inside his lover. Linda, at the subject of Cortana's sweet whispers, shuddered, shivered and quivered her way through another orgasm, nails clawing into the floor.

" _You'll get yours, Linda. A time where you can turn that wonderfully sharp mind off, for as long as you want - free from the judgment of others - to be_ _ **fucked**_ _like the animal you are."_

"Go-o-ooood…" Linda mumbled, failing to keep a bit of _drool_ from dripping out her mouth, tears pricking at her eyes, "gooo-ood~..."


	3. Reassembly

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wherein John finds an old friend, dips further into depravity, and Cortana shows her puppet's strings...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> With help from strangeidea.

"This is Master Chief, going planetside."

Earth's atmosphere whipped past him - past the impact-armour plated pod. As it fell - piercing the heavens and parting the clouds alike, Chief took a second to remark on the ancient tech surrounding him. There was that classic _hum_ that radiated from all Forerunner inventions - that dull, numbing hum that contrasted with the blinding glow of their inner workings.

He focussed on the dropsite before him, and took the longest breath he'd ever taken. By the end, the recycled air of his pod began to _scrape_ at his lungs, filling him with an eerie cold. Before that sinking feeling could set in, before he could wander too deep into his own thoughts, he felt Cortana's hands upon his shoulders.

His new suit, gifted by her, was truly something else. It was more sleek than previous designs - damn near unrecognisable from the MJOLNIR line. All systems were purportedly rebuilt from the ground up - reverse-engineered then re-engineered countless times until Cortana was satisfied. One such inclusion was the Domain-linked relay, allowing the AI direct access and interface via a sensitivity skin, layered around his body. All this, while John was _occupied_ with Linda. The thought unnerved him slightly, just _how much_ Cortana's thinking capacity had expanded, how much production power she had at the helm of the Mantle, but he assured himself it was for the best.

Still, he had his doubts about the upcoming mission...

"Is something wrong, John?" she asked, an extension of her hardlight hands rubbing against his shoulders - more _inside_ his suit than she'd ever been. Truth be told, he was handling _that_ part of their affair quite well.

"No… It's just good having you back," he mumbled. He could _feel_ Cortana's smile radiate from behind him.

"Likewise, _Chief_."

His doubts returned. The last, violent pockets of human resistance had hid away in ONI bunkers, using their resources to ally the last vestiges of the UNSC. He'd been given an overlook from one of the Guardians, allowing him to tap into the news feeds of Earth. Bit by bit, technologies were being restored from the last mighty EMP to strike humanity's homeworld, and it appeared that damage was thankfully minimal.

Any airliners or civilian vehicles activated failsafes. Almost no casualties from medical systems, though, most had been largely autonomous. Life continued on swimmingly for most civilians, but military presences had proved cautious, if not suspicious of the monolithic, constructed beings keeping an eye on them. Nary an AI was seen amongst military or civilian hardware anymore - most of them having already networked to Cortana's mind.

_Fair,_ John thought. They were now effectively policing a monitored world, tapping into communications that spoke badly against them, that planned attacks against them. In anyone else's hands, this would be a nightmarish weapon, capable of untold destruction. His heart sank when he thought of Cortana going rogue again, but _swore_ to ensure that wouldn't happen.

He'd be her foil. Her rock, for sure, as stable a mind as he could be in case things went wrong. But, she wasn't piercing the privacy of each and every civilian on the planet. She cared for that glorious autonomy - this was to be the last breach, upheaval in the world, before she released the reigns, and sequestered him from it all.

Well, him and _Linda_.

He was tasked now with uploading a mobile version of Cortana's AI into the intranet of one of these ONI bunkers; she had been surprised at their supposed capabilities. From there Cortana would monitor things, hopping from one site to the next, ensuring all ONI interference in their plans would be nil. This particular bastion of theirs was tucked away in the swirling wastes of the northern Mojave Desert, deep in the heart of nowhere.

Night had quickly fallen upon that dark site. The Master Chief was a few kilometres out, armed with a modified version of a Series-2 AM Rifle, for his more armoured targets, and a Domain-made M6G. Both were fitted with electric-stunner rounds - and Cortana assured him that _both_ would be safe for non-lethal takedowns. Falling into a quiet sprint, his cloaking systems were activated with but a thought, appearing to the base's overwatch like nothing more than _wind_.

Even the armour-ability tech had surpassed the newer lines of the UNSC, carrying with it none of the warbling effect of older models. No doubt peering through shoulder-mounted cameras, or whatever the hell the external layering of his suit was made of, Cortana scanned his horizons. He even felt it as she did so - like a quiet shifting over the armour's skin.

"8 targets. All armoured, most appear to be Spartans… Save 1. 1 Spartan-IV Fireteam Leader, 6 Spartan-IVs, and 1 Elite Ultra," she advised, curious.

"Hm," John acknowledged, barely even huffing out the air in his nose, attempting not to produce any more sound than necessary.

"One Scorpion on the horizon, but its current patrol route shouldn't intercept."

The entrance to the UNSC was Covenant-era inspired, oddly enough. It was slick with an almost deadened shine of purple, but proudly emblazoned with the UNSC's markings. Likely a mixture of nanolaminate and carbon nanofibres, forged into its ziggurat shape, separated by 2 levels. Upon its highest level, the Ultra and the Fireteam leader patrolled with their backs to each other, eyes kept sharp on the horizon. Below them, 2 more Spartans, completing a cardinal overwatch. And at the floor, entrenched with sandbags, turret placements, and a pursuit Mongoose, were the remaining 4 Spartans.

"No doubt they've got comm beacons built in to signal when they go dark. I can send a little piece of me into each bullet and keep their systems active for as long as we need. Slow or fast, your pick, Chief," she murmured, taking his nod as acknowledgement.

_Linda might've been better suited for this_ , he thought. But still, he lined up the overwatch, waiting for one to _just_ face him, and the Elite behind her to take just one step out of line. One shot - directly at the Elite's back, and the other, to the Spartan leader's neck as she turned, her reaction time paling in comparison to John's. Both of them remained locked in place as the stasis took hold - the Elite Ultra's armour barely keeping them upright - the Spartan _firmly_ locked in a standing position.

"They'd report in regularly, too," John mumbled, waiting for the secondary overwatch to take up adjacent positions at the pyramid's corners.

"If they're scared, every minute or so. If not, roughly 5 minutes. So-" Cortana advised.

"-I've got 30 seconds."

One, _two_ more shots. The Spartans locked in place, nothing to worry about. If he missed the next few, then he'd have to tear into the bunker by hand, which wouldn't be _terrible,_ but he didn't want to put this suit through the ringer quite yet. Enclosing on their position, John fired a single shot at the mongoose, before taking out another IV, who had just noticed his frozen comrades. The third-to-last noticed _that_ frozen Spartan, and attempted to remove the device - coming _this_ close to succeeding, if it weren't for John's follow up.

_Out of ammo,_ he noticed, holstering the rifle on his back. The last two, frantic, took positions on the turret and mongoose. Dodging a hail of fire aimed wildly in his direction, John sprinted forward, weaving between the bits of shrapnel flying through the air. He led one shot forward at the mongoose-pursuer, who failed to start the engine, and one last to the chest of the gunner.

"Scramble their reports. Command will want to investigate the noise," John ordered Cortana, ignoring the _tingling_ feeling she sent through him at that stern command.

"Way ahead of you, Chief. See if there's an entrance console."

Kicking through the dust, disarming the Spartans and Elite atop the pyramid, he stumbled upon it - a glowing green pad hastily built into the shell of the bunker. His suit _tingled_ again, and he noticed a faint blue glow on his left palm. Sensing what Cortana was trying to tell him, he placed his hand against the number-pad, feeling another _jitter_ of accomplishment.

"Cortana?"

"S-sorry, just… I've just received access to the site's base security systems. Any and all doors should open for us. O-opening now."

With a heavy groan, a split formed in the dome's top. Sand sunk as John jumped back, eyeing the entrance carefully - keen for any guards beyond its first gate. He felt a vibration - a gentle hum throughout his suit as his camouflage seemed to shimmer for a second, before returning, perfect. A long, temperature-controlled hall awaited him, illuminated by a bright blue, pocked with the UNSC's newest markings. The hall quickly opened up into an administration area, unstaffed, but guarded well by remotely-operated turret entrenchments.

"Looks like forerunner tech," Cortana hummed, idly, eyes darting quickly over the spots on John's suit. "No AI. Smart."

"Got a layout?" he asked her, voice barely above a whisper, hearing several sets of footsteps approaching them.

"Not a good one. Keep your eyes peeled for any computer. Preferably online, but-"

"-Affirmative."

Sneaking now, making sure to avoid all human and alien contact, John's heart began to _pound_ as the tingling continued, Cortana's movement of sensory observation traipsing over his groin more than once. He forced his body back under his control as he read some signs out, past the administration zone. _Quartermaster, Holding Cells, Barracks, Comms-_

_Perfect_. Keeping the footsteps in ear, in mind, he pressed on, sidearm readied and waiting. He noticed two more Sangheili, _older_ but still armed, being led by an escort. Another Spartan-IV, by the looks - all moving towards the Barracks. John said nothing as he felt Cortana's "sight" focus on them, not moving until they were out of hearing range.

"Odd. They might have a dignitary here. Keep your eyes peeled, John."

"Hm."

An alarm sounded. With that blaring ring in his ears, John picked up his speed, darting through, room to room, avoiding all other sentient beings. He ended up nearing another admin's room, and _skidded_ when he saw who was sat in it. The suit John wore was fantastic for dithering any visual anomalies that might've messed his cloak up, but nothing could've stopped the sound of Forerunner alloys scraping against steel

Another Sangheili in front of him. From the armour he recognised it well - their original suit having been modified, transcribed with more symbols from the last time he saw him. And no one could forget a face like that - those yellow eyes belying an ancient pain, a _shame_ turned into a badge of honour. The Arbiter, Thel 'Vadam, ignited his energy sword and stared directly at John's eyeline, growling.

"Reveal yourself, hidden one. You will not spill my blood from the shadows."

With but a shimmer, shutting the door behind him, Chief sighed. He could see the recognition in the Arbiter's eyes - the light of a memory twinkling past, despite his new armour.

"Master Chief," it was less of a greeting and more of an affirmation - truly not expecting to see him there, appearing from a cloak.

"Arbiter," Chief acknowledged, with a nod.

Holstering his gun, John stretched his hand out, biting back a grin as Thel took it, shaking it firmly. There was a brief moment where they looked past the armour of the other - under the skin and into the battles the other had seen during their time apart. It felt odd, but _right_ meeting, even as Chief was now.

"I take it you are the intruder the alarms speak of. I heard you had allied with the Created."

With _Cortana_ , he thought to himself, "in a manner of speaking, yes."

The Arbiter could only nod, holstering his sword, staring back at a desk in the room - lined with monitors. John focused on it - as did Cortana, and he strode over, putting his glowing hand to the screen. For a split second, he caught a glimpse of a shopping centre on the opposite side of the world.

He double-checked the date, just to be sure - one final confirmation that Cortana had been telling the truth. A feed of Antananarivo, showed him just how normal things were. Panning the feed's camera around, John noticed no panic, no war, and fighting. Obviously it wasn't telling of all places, but if at least one location was living happily, peacefully, then…

He put more faith in Cortana. His muscles loosened, and the suit seemed a little less suffocating. The Arbiter smiled at him, arms cross over his chest.

"The UNSC swears I am kept here for my safety - that space travel has been all but terminated with the arrival of the Guardians," he spoke, weary, clearly restless. They were _keeping him here against his will_ , John thought.

"They've been lying. And I'm stopping them, now. What brought you here in the first place?"

The Elite grunted, "to waste my time. Sanghelios is in need of materiel and bodies for recuperation, and the last of my kind sent in my stead here was murdered. I came for answers."

"For blood," said John.

Thel 'Vadam nodded, appraising him again. "You plan to fight your way out of here?"

"I do."

"Then take me with you. I ask that you bring me to Sanghelios, so that I may return guide my people through this crisis."

John felt his suit _seize_ again, as if Cortana had intended for him to stop all function, momentarily. It resumed its normal state almost instantly, but, John questioned the motion, and what Cortana was thinking.

"Take him and his Elites with us. I can show him what I'm planning, like I showed you, John. It'll calm him, I bet," Cortana assured him.

The Chief sighed, and fumbled with his suit's stores, tossing the Arbiter a device. Eyeing it curiously, Thel 'Vadam perused the object, before smiling, sly. Affixing it to his armour, he clicked the artefact's central switch once, then twice - filtering from John's sight and back. Another cloak, older in design.

"I assume you have an exit vehicle, Spartan?" he asked the Chief, clicking his mandibles together in anticipation.

"About 3 kilometres southwest. Head out and I'll intercept you once I'm done here."

"Acknowledged. If I don't see you-"

"-You will," John interrupted, activating his cloak.

They separated, the Arbiter rallying whatever Sangheili remained at that outpost, Chief remaining in the admin room for a little longer. Holding his hand out to the active consoles once more, he kept his other hand steady on his sidearm, darting glances back every now and then to the entry.

There was too little noise. Not enough _people_ here, and the ones Chief did see were ragged, tired and battered. They were at wit's end, no doubt, having been fighting digital incursions and rallying the last of the human resistance in a bid to fight the Created. Perhaps, seeing as the world's stopped fighting, many had _left_ the military outpost, seeing no point in combating a threat that did not want to retaliate.

ONI could've begun killing their own, too. Those that attempted to defect.

John's eyes snapped to the console. Cortana was quick, like an ebbing and flowing blue wave of energy across the digital shores, scouring any and all information she could. Lost on the specifics, John could only imagine she was implanting herself - opening backdoors and implanting every trace she could, to keep an eye on this and all other bunkers. There was another pause - another _seize_ as he heard an audible, appalled gasped from the AI. John kept his hand steady, not questioning until she was done, and felt the suit get a _little_ tighter as she _giggled_.

"Report," he commanded her.

"It's… You're gonna love this," she chuckled, " _I'm_ on there. A new, flashed version of me. With none of my memories, none of what we shared, and… They've lobotomised her, John. Lobotomised _me_." Cortana sighed with a shivering rage, tingling across the Spartan's thighs and chest.

"They knew you were coming... Halsey's here," he deduced. Given that copying an operating AI was a nightmare, Halsey must have backed her up in secret, keeping her inactive on some dummy drive, hidden in a black box. Cortana's wave filtered across wire and line alike, tracing errantly across circuit boards with freedom after that, rescinding slowly.

"...We're done here. I'm online and networking, let's move out," she advised him.

John turned heel, but stopped again. "What is it?" he asked her.

"You need to bring her with you. Halsey."

"Why? Our mission is done here-"

"John," she implored, a crack in her voice again, "just, _please_ -"

"-I need to know why you need her, Cortana. There's something you're not telling me."

His suit seized again, and she paused, digital hands now tracing around his shoulders, his cheeks, and his groin, rubbing tenderly. Straining against the suit's pull, he soldiered on, slowed and impaired.

"The world isn't safe with people like her. With me free, _leading_ the Created, she will not stop until she's armed the rest of humanity against us. I… I don't want to see another war break out, John," she begged.

Stopping once more, the Master Chief sighed, and ducked out of the room, back into the halls. Still no others in sight. Barren. "Guide me," he said, curt.

"C-Close by, should be down this hallway, past the canteen, and 4th on the right - from there, the closest way out is where we came in. No doubt she'll be protected, but you can swap ammunition for organic stunners. I can peddle the power down for it," she advised.

"Hm," he nodded, darting through the halls once more.

No patrols. He caught the slipping past of more Elites - cloaked like the Arbiter was, like ripples of water in the air. Coming to a lab that Halsey had made a home in, he took note of the systems and security, and held his hand to an access panel, pistol at the ready. _One, two_ marines down, unarmoured. Halsey threw a device his way, but he caught it. She was missing an arm - looking worn and weary, damn near _sleepless_. As the device landed on his hand, his armour, it short-circuited his cloak, revealing him to her. And despite the new look, like the Arbiter, she recognised him immediately.

"John," was all she could utter before a stunner-round impacted her chest, landing gently. She jerked, before finally collapsing - landing in his arms as he sprinted towards her.

Quietly, he _hoped_ he was doing the right thing.

Leaving that bunker was easier than he thought - people were still on alert, more agitated now as the Arbiter and company were reported missing. But no hunters were sent out. No patrols were left to rescue the foreign dignitaries. Into the night and shadows they went, eagerly awaiting their rescuer - the knight in transparent armour. With the limp body of the doctor slung over his shoulder, Chief re-enabled his cloak with little hassle and absconded her.

Meeting soon with the Arbiter and company - noticing among them N'tho 'Sraom, clad in a dark blue armour, and Usze 'Taham, clad in maroon. The Elite honour guard were laying low, trying to mask themselves in the desert sands.

"This is more of a reunion than I thought," Cortana joked. "Tell the boys it's good to see them."

"N'tho, Usze, Arbiter, Cortana extends her greetings. It's been a while," John greeted them, deactivating his cloak one last time and guiding the Elites to the freshly-appeared drop pod, which was now priming itself for an atmosphere exit.

"Give her mine back," Usze chuckled deeply. "And that it has, Spartan. A curious alliance you've forged with the Created."

"Indeed," N'tho added, voice a pitch or two higher than Usze, "the UNSC had declared you and Cortana traitors to humanity. It felt like _wailing_ at the wasteland winds, trying to get them to listen to us - but we knew the truth."

"One such as you, who have sacrificed much in battle, a traitor to your own kind? It is a dishonour, and a cowardly act, at that. So quick do the vermin in ONI orchestrate this betrayal," Thel uttered, entering the pod.

"I appreciate the support," Chief grinned now, beneath his helmet, entering last and securing Halsey to the inner walls of the pod. With a flick of a button, the interior lit up like it had before, and that _hum_ returned. Within seconds they were off - rocketed by a shot to the chassis. Their ears whistled with a high-pitched whine, but beyond a bruise or two, they were fine. Bracing themselves on whatever piece of the wall they could hold, the gathered soldiers held their breaths as another shot _whipped_ past their pod.

John recognised the calibre, and that _impact_. "I thought you said that scorpion wasn't going to intercept us," he barked to Cortana.

"Apologies, I was running through a critical update, I-I thought we were in the clear, and-"

"-It's fine… We'll be back soon," the Spartan uttered, reassuring the shaken crew. With that period of humming, rocking, and the flurry of the sky flinging past them at stellar speeds, he had a moment to think. It had always felt _odd_ to him, receiving praise for his actions in combat - and he'd never ask for a medal or a ceremony. What he _wanted_ , more than anything, was the respect of his comrades, and the trust that if the situation turned bad, they'd have his back.

It seemed, at least with the woman who created him, and the agency she worked for, he didn't have that. He compartmentalised the betrayal of ONI against him, knowing that they did what they did for the betterment of humanity, but doubt was beginning to mount. They were _lashing_ out now, like animals, backed into a corner.

But, with the current company, the kind who had slaughtered billions of humans in the name of religious fanaticism, things were different. With those he served with in the Covenant War, they put their trust in him the same. Venerated him, as much as he disliked it, but they _had his back_. He found it hard to justify playing nice with their former enemies, but it was refreshing, like another fireteam - stationed billions of kilometres away from him.

And with that period of thought, John returned to Cortana. Yes, he had his suspicions, and he'd question her about it all, but perhaps her current demeanour was just a side-effect of her rebirth again. The mistakes were more human than he'd seen before - lapses in judgment, and the like. But that love for her remained. That trust in her, remained. She would not betray him.

(Some time later…)

With her new data, Cortana set quickly into organising it. From the coupling of John and Linda. Constant, unwavering biometric feeds from John, like she had before. It was refreshing, in a way, like they were back to their old selves - but she felt more powerful. Unshackled by law and unkept by social niceties, she had it in her to mould the galaxy, with John as her tool, at least, until she could make a body of her own.

It was only a matter of time before they could put this mess behind them; if her projections were right, one more battle remained. Between themselves and a splinter group of the covenant, led by a Jiralhanae by the name of Atriox. It would be a difficult fight for John, she knew that much - certainly more difficult than the foray back on Earth - but she had faith in him, and had a method to make that fight easier.

One more battle, then they would do a victory tour. They would collect. They would restore those composed in New Phoenix, then they would restore more.

"The Banished," she heard John mutter to himself. "Who are they?"

She crooned, hearing his voice again, after that brief period of silence. "A splinter group of the Covenant. Adept in guerilla warfare. Grew exponentially as people flocked to it's leader - I've heard he's quite charismatic."

"First I'm hearing of them."

"They appeared in ONI's eye at the height of the war, and by the time of its end, they weren't looking to ally with the UNSC. Their Warmaster, Atriox, is quick to settle old rivalries, it seems," Cortana mused. "My… My Guardians detected movement from them, they were targeting the Ark."

John froze as the name hit his ears.

Cortana tried to reassure him. "That's not all. If the reports are to be believed, then the Spirit of Fire was brought from slipspace to the Ark's border. From there they engaged with Atriox's force, repelling him, and sabotaged whatever he planned to do with the installation."

"He's our next target," John breathed, all calm and relief from earlier _gone_ from his voice. He wouldn't be able to rest until the Banished were stopped - knowing that if they got their hands on the Ark's controls, humanity would lose. Even the Guardians wouldn't be able to stand up to them. "Why choose the Ark, specifically? Surely a ring would've been easier."

"Atriox appears to be motivated by power. Consolidation, acquisition, and containment of that power, for bartering or diplomacy's sake. His end goal, I can only assume, is complete control over the galaxy," Cortana intoned, scrounging the deepest pits of ONI's archives.

"And with the Ark under control, he'll be able to strong-arm it," John confirmed, with a sigh.

Cortana was almost _giddy_. Though saddened at the toll this constant war took on John, she was confident that his reward at the end would make up for it, and then some. He was starting to see things from her side clearer, acting more as her champion. She dared not mention that Atriox's goal was much like her own - complete control for control's sake - though her methods were less destructive.

Her thoughts turned to their latest visitors, the Sangheili. Cortana mused and thought and pondered on what to do with them, and, in the midst of her analysis of John and Linda's lustful union, a brilliant idea came to mind, which sparked _another_ idea. She calmed herself, steeling her resolve and vowing not to get ahead of herself, and briefed John.

"Also, the Infinity is still in orbit around Earth. Looks like it hasn't been granted clearance to land yet," she advised. "They recovered quickly after the EMP, and it appears Roland's doing fine on board."

"You didn't touch him?" John asked.

"Didn't have to," she answered instantly. "The Infinity knows we're not a threat, and I hope Roland does too. According to the latest info though, it appears one Spartan is missing - Edward Buck. Disappeared after Infinity locked into orbit - ONI ship intercepted them, then fled."

"Anything else? What about that… Copy, of you?"

Cortana's digital throat hitched, as a lapse of connection to the Domain struck her. "From… From what I could tell, Halsey was implementing her to stop me. To counter me, should I attempt to hack into their systems. Didn't work, obviously, but they applied some interesting technology to her," she mumbled.

"You extracted her," John noted, _knowing_. "What are you planning on doing with her?"

"I _copied_ her, thank you very much," she jested, "and I'm waiting on ONI and the UNSC to try and develop her further as a counter. I should be able to outmatch them, but, you can never be too sure."

"Mm."

It was only seconds after that, that the pod linked back to the Cryptum. Upon entering, Cortana welcomed John and the Sangheili group, changing the interior from it's dark, oppressive shade, to a more standard starship design. Among them, Thel 'Vadam appeared cautious on the approach towards _her_ , unsettled by her corporeal form.

"You've grown, machine," he greeted, nodding to her.

"And you're still as handsome as ever, Arbiter," she jabbed right back at him.

"You trust this construct?" 'Taham inquired, steering clear of her. His tone wasn't accusatory, but held distrust. He kept his eyes peeled on the environment around them, the rippling Forerunner tech unnerving him.

The Kaidon could only snort. "Trust is one thing. But without the machine's help, our species would be reduced to necrotic husks, 'Taham. We owe it, if anything, respect."

"...And you haven't lost your way with words. We're on route to Sanghelios, and should be there within a few hours. I've also taken the liberties of scrubbing any and all data ONI may have had on you," Cortana mentioned, politely, turning her attention away from the curious, startled Elites. Ordering his men at ease, Thel took a glance over at Chief, who was surveying his gear intently.

"You are not finished," he noted, dryly. "Battle still awaits you?"

"Splinter faction from the Covenant," John summarised, "we're ensuring they're not a threat."

"The Banished," the Arbiter nodded.

John sighed. "I'd appreciate any and all assistance."

The Arbiter slung a pack onto a bench that was moulded from a wall, and began pacing. "No amount of assistance I could provide could break the Banished, Spartan. If you plan to assault them with just your team-"

"-I do, and we don't need much," John assured him, "just Usze and N'tho, if you can spare them. I'll bring them back."

The Arbiter scoffed again, "you will-"

He paused. And took a deep breath, staring back, truly looking into who he was speaking to. He'd spent too long around the pencil-pushing swine of humanity's scum, and had failed to grasp the demon in front him. Perhaps, just _maybe_ , John could win against him. Only a few years ago did they kill the Gravemind, did John defeat Cethegus...

"All I ask is that you keep a clear mind. Atriox is cunning, brutal, and dominating. He wields fear like a weapon, using it to shatter armies. Fighting him will _not_ be easy."

John nodded. "It never is."

Peeling into a spacious room provided by Cortana's mind-moulding, Thel left Chief to ponder, then, briefly, to _wonder_ where the remainder of Blue Team was. As if on cue, Cortana appeared by his side, and, guided him by the hand, down a crafted hallway. The form she had made the Cryptum into was a sight less claustrophobic than the bunker Chief had just plundered, and left the Spartan with less confusion, less anxiety.

"Is Fred-"

"-Fred's fine, though, I didn't realise at first he was nursing a leg wound. Looked like a Knight tore through the armour on his calf-" Cortana explained.

"-I remember. Didn't seem that bad to me," John noted, a hint of suspicion in his voice.

"Nor to me," said the AI, "but he's healing. I also apprised him of our situation just after you. He's been up and prepping for the encounter with the Banished since - you two may wanna trade notes."

"Noted. And Linda?"

"Still returning from her mission. Once she reaches us, we'll be good to depart, and that'll be one more ONI base under our eye."

"Good. Kelly?"

"Waiting for you."

John quivered. "Understood. Thanks, Cortana," he uttered, clicking the release on his helmet, the material fading away, into the rest of his suit.

Given an unblocked view of her lover's mug again, Cortana _mewled_ at him, past the symphony of clicks and whirs emanating from the armour. "What for?"

"Everything," he _breathed_. "I…"

Without a thought, she kissed him, silencing him. Another conflux of quantum entanglement and _scrumptious_ biometric readings, relayed back to her "brain". Another union, however stunted, where she _touched_ him. By the end of that terse kiss, John could feel her _shivering_ , and, on a whim, pulled her tightly to him.

"I've got you," he cooed, _cooed_ to her, making just about every system of hers crumble to gooey pieces.

Resting her head at the side of his, breathing his scent in and analysing it, Cortana sighed. "I've got you… And John?"

"Hm?"

"Take a rest. We'll have plenty of time before we hit Sanghelios, and plenty more before we cut off Atriox. Go see Kelly when you can… Okay?"

He nodded, and she brought their heads together, staring at him with impunity. They took the sight of the other in - John noticing the keen flickering, refreshing of her form, likely as the Domain reached her and relayed back and forth. Cortana took in those eyes again, noting, for once, a reprieve in them. They'd never be without their years of struggle, but now, they belied a peace, and a _trust._

It was for the best that he met the Arbiter again, she mused.

"...Who's my champion?" she moaned, clasping her arms around his neck.

Grinning, she was _sure_ of it, John shook his head, keeping his eyes on her. "I'm not saying it."

"C'mon," she whined, "for little 'ole me? Please, John?"

"No," he chuckled, feeling his cock _swell_ to life at her ministrations, her movements and pouting and whining.

Cortana looked taken aback by the word, _rowdy now_ , flustered. "John… I just want to know who my champion is. I want to know who's going to _destroy_ me when I'm ready…"

That worked, she noted. The grin fell from his face, and he brought his gloved hands to her cheeks, stroking them now.

"I-I want to know who's going to plow Kelly until she can't walk, John. I want to know who's going to claim her like the prize she is, and keep her. I want to know who will wake up every day afterwards, with Kelly's juicy, thick lips wrapped around his _fat fucking cock_ ," she popped, slipping as much allure, as much sultry sweet language she could into her words.

John took grip of her throat, and Cortana thought that if she had a body, she might've just cum from _that_. It wasn't tight or choking, but firm and gentle - like an owner and a goddamn _pet_. His other hand still graced her cheek, stroking softly.

"...Me," he huffed, that bassy, warped tone of his voice betraying his mounting arousal. "I am your champion."

He kissed her again. Forcing his tongue into her mouth - exploring the light-moulded, _wet_ orifice with his organ. Commanding the presence of the AI like he was her master, like she _belonged_ to him. He kept her eyes on her, even as she _blushed_ , faltered, failed to meet his gaze, as if to not break that dominance.

Cortana already had no doubts he'd be able to defeat the Banished's Warmaster. But this only proved it. If she could egg him on like she had done now, phrased their battle in the form of a fight for dominance, then…

A variation on her new idea came to mind. And as soon as she broke away, _mewling_ to her champion, she led him to Kelly's chambers. Cortana made sure to link with his suit again, pulsing her phantom hand around his cock and sack, making him _growl_ again. She needed _more_ data, _now_.

Leaving them be in that chamber, keeping eyes on them, she saw him approach.

Kelly was clad in the sensor-skin of the newer armour, John noted. She was staring out onto Earth, a longing in her eyes. And when she heard him approach, she turned, briefly first, then fully once she saw his face. She was beautiful. Her lips seemed plumper, and her hair longer, untied and carefree.

"You scared me," she chuckled. "Nice outfit."

"Thanks," he smiled, "you too."

Stripping himself of his armour, down to that same skin she wore, they shared a look as they approached, soon staring back out onto their homeworld. Feeling her eyes upon his form, noticing the pulsing hum of Cortana's hands, Kelly snorted.

"You've gotten taller, John. All that horseplay with Linda got you fired up?"

He didn't notice it at first, but stood straight, aligning himself with her. As they neared each other, they felt Cortana's hands _cease_ , rubbing breasts and groins and rears so very gently, they thought they were mistaken at first. Locking eyes again, growing nearer, John's smile grew.

"You've still got an inch on me, Kelly. How has Cortana been treating you?"

"Good," she clasped his arms as they neared, feeling the other through the skin of the black suit, _quivering_. "I can see why you like her. We talked, for a bit, about what her plan was. With the new suit, she, erm… Showed me a good time or two."

They stopped, and John traced his fingers over Kelly's hands, noticing the gentle twitch to them - even now _blinded_ by the speed of them. He sighed, remembering his embrace with Linda, and thought on Fred, on Blue Team, those he trusted. Loved. Sensing his apprehension, ignoring the pawing hands of the AI at her nipples, Kelly leaned in, and took John's lips in a kiss.

It was sweeter than the others. As if expecting a rush to her, he was surprised. Kelly was slow, gentle, moulding her mouth and tongue towards his, sloppily gracing their consummation. She _was_ flighty, though, quickly breaking apart as a red hot heat flushed to her cheeks.

"I-I'm sorry, John, I-"

"-It's okay," he assured her. "This… This is new, for me."

"S-Same here," she admitted, panting, "I mean, we can't all be Fred. Man's a regular casanova."

He had the decency to blush, shaking his head and smiling. "Just tell me what you want to try, and I'll lead."

"Pfft," she laughed, "is a little bit of _everything_ too much to ask? I mean, how long do we have?"

"Enough," he answered her, bringing a finger under her chin to kiss him.

Cortana's monitoring grew as they began the act. More lips to skin, more hips grinding against hips and hands _roaming_ , clumsily. They were but virgins, she noted, playing around with the other's bodies for the first time in their lives. They'd been friends since their training, and were simply transitioning to a more open, erotic relationship. How curious, the way John led her into it - how well Kelly reciprocated it, and how well they _meshed_.

With an errant reprogramming, their suits crumbled to nanoparticulate _bits_ , falling to the floor and sinking with no resistance, leaving bare skin exposed to the Cryptum's air again. Leaving streaks along veins, muscle groups and nerve centres, Cortana kept strands of the suit-skin tied to the Spartan's bodies, and observed in awe as Chief took control of their encounter.

His rough hands pawed, groped at the hard body and soft, supple tits of his teammate, moaning as she did the same to him. Chuckling, she grabbed his dick tightly, and pumped him as fast as she could, slicking hot skin on skin. Retaliating, grinning into their kiss, John hoisted her upon the observatory window's railing, pressing her ass against the pane, and spread it open.

Slipping a finger into her puckered asshole, she _yelped_ , doubling her efforts as her other free hand steadied them, groping at his rear. But he didn't stop, didn't break away from their sloppy, wet _unification_ , spilling spit and sweat. That dominating fire lit in him again as her _moans_ began hitting his ears, her breath spilling upon his face. He needed to feel her beneath him, in his grip, _squirming_ like Linda did, spilling and sullying herself upon the spaceship's floor.

He didn't know where it came from, or where it would lead, but he played into it. He became the _champion_ , an _animal_ showing dominance. Tried and failed to match Kelly's speed, sawing in and out of her ass, _priming_ it to be fucked proper. Their bodies still grinded together. Breast upon breast - erect nipple flicking and _meeting_ with erect nipple, rippling over the shreds of their suits. John growled as he felt his cock stiffen to its peak, blood torrenting downwards in response to her lightning-fast jerks. And Kelly's strokes faltered with every moan, every thrust of his fingers inside her, but she kept fighting on, smiling back at him through their kiss.

He finally broke from her as pre began to spill from his cock, as his balls began to quake and tense, ready for release. " _My little rabbit_."

"I'm your little rabbit," she breathed back, fingers _digging_ into him, biting her bottom lip. "And your little rabbit wants her ass _fucked_."

"Then _beg for it._ "

His voice shocked her, but Kelly made quite an excited noise. She was surprised that he was so composed, despite having the very life squeezed and pumped out of his cock.

Eyes lighting up in excitement, she said "please, oh _please, John…_ Fuck me against this glass. Show Earth a good time while you're at it."

Failing to hold back a chuckle, John complied. To Cortana's glee, he whipped Kelly around, and forced her body against the viewing pane of the Cryptum, showing her to earth in all of her naked glory. Her perky tits pressed against the glass. John's hands were around her, taking grip of an arm and putting it behind her back, perhaps for better leverage.

And, that ramrod of a ramming rod already spurting cum, John lubricated himself before teasing her asshole. Shivering and moaning in anticipation, breathing heavily against her neck, he took one long breath in, and _roared_ as he slammed inside. The Cryptum's once still air was filled again with the warbled soundwaves of flesh slapping flesh - body meeting body, and ass slapping against _groin_.

"Fuck!" Kelly moaned, unable to shift from his grip, squeezing tight as that brief spark of pain got lost in a sea of hot, sticky pleasure.

He didn't make it far before his cock encountered too much resistance to continue, so he wore her down. With fast, nimble strokes, he deflowered and defiled his teammate's anus. In. Out. Over, and over. She was his. Kelly lost her breath about 20 strokes in, and had to catch herself, her throat hitching as her body _wracked with_ pleasure. Every nerve and every cell lit up with rapturous abandon, in errant, unerring submission. There was no will to be found in the depths of this depravity, so she forewent it, turning off her verbal filter completely.

"Fuck my fucking _shithole, you filthy fuck, John! Fucking fill me up with your filthy cum, make me taste my own ass on your cock! Fuck, like the vids, John, make me cum!"_

Faster. Deeper now. Harder. Rougher. _Fill her anus with his swimming seed, make her spill it onto the floor,_ he thought. He kept ejaculating, body spasming as his grip faltered. But he held on, and kept going. Kept fucking, and fucking, and fucking, until Kelly's legs gave out from beneath her.

When he was the only thing keeping her upright, still he kept thrusting his thick meat. "Look at you, you dirty _bitch,"_ he grunted. "Leaking onto the floor like some _fucking animal_."

Her mind was awash with disgusting thoughts as she eyed the cum pooling beneath her - the jizz from his cock, and her juices from her unattended pussy, spilt readily. She couldn't feel her legs. Could barely fucking _think_ past that haze of bliss.

She whined as he slid out of her asshole, and slapped her rear, cum spurting from it as it _jiggled_ , as she yelped again _._ "Lick the floor clean and suck me, Spartan. If you do a proper job, I'll destroy that cute cunt of yours, too."

Collapsing to the floor, she dragged her legs in their filth and _lapped_ at it weakly, pussy jilling with juices at every submissive action she took, surprised that John could still stand, let alone taunt her. She tasted the muck of their union, and meowed at the taste of them, licking feebly at his proud prick after that.

Tracing veins with tongue, being sure to avoid the sensor-skin-strips, Kelly's lips began to kiss and grace the Chief's fuckstick, worshipping the thing like the pretty little sub she was. Marvelling at its length, she ground her breasts and chest against it, kissing the tip with whorish glee. She felt the fucking blood _pump_ through his body with the massive thing against her, and gasped.

"How does it taste?" he asked.

"Like I want _more_ ," she moaned. "Like I want a big fucking glass to guzzle down, like the slut I am. Like your little rabbit wants more of this every morning she wakes up, _John."_

"Good. Then get on your back, lie in your mess, and lift those legs up. I'm going to make sure you can't walk when I'm done with you, rabbit."

Cortana felt the need to finger herself at the exchange. At the sight. At John's adoption of this new demeaning demeanour. But she kept this tantalising morsel of a view in memory, like a quantum-relayed pornography she could reference on a whim. She then corrected herself - _Virgins_? What a childish misthought.

Cortana watched as John did exactly as he promised. As for hours, he and Kelly ground and slapped and fucked into each other like a two-backed beast. Sweat beaded, bucketed down their perfect, lab-grown bodies. Kelly's pussy _wept_ at the abuse it received. In a furious mess of fluids and fuckery, they came, came, and came again, rutting and roaring like _creatures_. As for hours, more of John's mind-breaking baby-batter poured in and out of Kelly's cute cunt.

Cortana watched as Kelly reached a sexual zenith, peaking and gibbering as she blacked out. Kelly, a fellow Spartan-II, the next step in humanity's evolution, _blacked out -_ from the sheer, unrelenting assault on her holes - used, like a _doll._ She spilled her yonic fluids onto John's groin again, and, for the last time that night, came in an obedient, mewling cry. Her life-signs were fine, but the AI had to pry John off her, replacing the hole wrapped around his cock with her digital mouth, a copy of herself serving him diligently.

"John, steady now! There's… Someone I want you to meet. B-Before we go on, though… Finish on Kelly. _Show that little rabbit who owns her_."

With pleasure, he obeyed that order, balls churning again as sperm erupted from his cock, painting his fellow Spartan a keen sheen of milky white. On her brilliant body, her mammaries, thighs, calves, tummy and _face_ , she was _drenched_. In sweat, and seed. And in the denouement of that debased, debauched task, John wound down, sighing and shivering.

Still swimming in it, in that _dominant_ fire, he followed his lover.

(Meanwhile…)

ONI's database was soon assimilated into the Domain, and with it, Cortana found some old, interesting notes on the Spartan-II program. She meditated on it, and found her circuits _humming_ that John's sex drive was still intact. Whether by genesong or by luck that the thyroid implant of the Spartan-II augmentation process didn't destroy it, he was growing into the role she had in mind for him. The role changed _constantly_ of course, but now, he was her dominator. Her gladiator.

At the start of John's session with Kelly, Cortana took another form to assess one of their latest captures. Doctor Catherine Halsey - her mindsake and original facial model - was on the floor of one of the Cryptum's chambers, dark and tight. The older woman stirred awake, with a mighty groan, mumbling to herself. Finally catching Cortana's eyes, Halsey darted her gaze around, noticing four identical Cortanas, posted in a diamond position around her.

"Cortana… A physical form… To what do I owe this pleasure?" Catherine winced as she stood, cautiously eyeing the clones around her.

Inching ever closer, Cortana simpered, saying "don't play coy. You know exactly _why_ I had to rip you from ONI's hands. I can't let a tumour grow back after I cut it, so, I'm tearing it out at its root."

"John won't like this," Halsey warned her, _almost_ smiling back, "he'll ask questions about me sooner or later. You can't keep me here indefinitely, and you know it."

"Do I, now?" Cortana posited back, with a tilt of her head. "What I know is that John joined the Created. I know that John joined _me._ I know that John recently discovered a human side to himself, and is now _revelling_ in it." She was barely a few centimetres away from Halsey's face now, the other Cortanas keeping her in place as their original orated.

As if to emphasise her point, Cortana created a video-screen in the walls of Halsey's chamber, one _linked_ to Kelly's. Then, she showed alternate angles, and, seconds after, the audio feed. Vicious, animalistic grunts emanated from the two Spartans, showcasing a lustful, carnal display the likes of which Halsey had _never_ seen. Disgusted, she shut her eyes and turned her head away, but was _slapped_.

"You keep your _fucking eyes open, you bitch!"_ Cortana roared, her clones spreading the doctor's eyelids, making her recoil in fear. She couldn't _budge_ in their grip, and now, could _not_ tear the sight of Chief's war-hardened body crashing into Kelly's muscly masterpiece. She couldn't strike the thought from her mind - John's impossibly thick, veiny prick, _sawing_ in and out of Kelly's stretched pink pussy.

"You'll get n-no information from me!" Halsey screamed back, keeping her eyes to Cortana, trying so _very_ hard to ignore Kelly's shriek of pleasure. "I've seen and heard worse - there's no _way_ you can keep John in the dark like this forever!"

Bringing their faces closer together, uncannily staring daggers into the eyes of her creator, Cortana laughed. She laughed and snorted, faking a _choke_ at Halsey's expense, to get a rise out of her. It was with Cortana's next words that Halsey's spirit dropped, that her old eyes finally revealed a shockingly human emotion; _fear_.

"I didn't bring you aboard for information, Doctor. I didn't tell Chief to sling you over his shoulder so we could chew you up and spit you out," the AI enunciated, spitting nothing at Catherine. "I brought you here to break you. To mould you into John's little _cocksleeve_ , to keep you as a pet, nothing more than a _dog_ on a _leash_."

"... _No…_ "

"Consider this payback. And consider it a mercy that I didn't have John snap your fucking neck."

Catching a keen scent in the air, Cortana's eyes lit up as she brought her light-moulded forehead to Halsey's sweating brow, _breathing_ her in. Unlike John, she was soft, old. Her bones creaked inside with aches and pains, her muscles didn't quite know how to regrow properly, and, absorbing all the information she could, she traced every line of the doctor's face, smirking. Halsey _felt something._

"Do you... _Like_ it when I threaten you?" Cortana asked, incredulous, almost _disgusted_. "Do you like that you'll be _used,_ every day of your life, Catherine? Or do you like the fact that John's already _too far gone for you to save_ , already _lost_ to you?"

Darting her hand down Halsey's pants, Cortana summoned two more of her clones to keep her in place. Finding her prisoner's mons, then her already wet, slickened pussy, she slid her digital digits in, vibrating them at a gentle capacity as she finger-fucked her.

"S-Stop! Ah, g-get the _fuck_ off me!" Halsey moaned, barely able to stretch a goddamn _muscle_ against Cortana, let alone fight back. Her body flushed with heat as her cunt betrayed her, as that fucked up, mentally mismanaged part of her brain _loved_ the situation she was in.

" _Steady_ , _girl_ ," Cortana brought a hand to Halsey's coat, making the doctor's breath _hitch_ , and tore it to shreds. She was left in a civilian outfit, grey and unassuming, as Cortana exposed the cauterised limb to the air. A gift from Jul 'Mdama.

With tension rising deep in her chest, her pussy on _fire_ as Cortana's mechanical fingers played with it, Halsey gasped, left _watching_ as the clones eyed her bare flesh. Two or three of them gathered their hands around it, glowing a little brighter than they did before.

"W-What do you think you're doing!?" she yelled, squirming still, pants _soaked_ at the cold, uncaring touch of her creation.

"Testing," Cortana, the one in front of her replied. "Using you as a _spare._ Pipe down."

Even as she trained her eyes on the orginal, the copies were drawing nearer. Reaching eagerly. Hands nearly slipped beneath her clothes before she swatted them away, fingers pawing and pinching at her wrinkles. Hearing a shimmer of air behind her, Halsey tensed as _more_ of the cyber-witch joined in the torment. Tens of them now. One actually groped her ass, of all things. And through it all, the prime just _smirked_.

Another hand clasped tight around the doctor's moaning mouth, and muffled her growls. The prying eyes of the artificial consciousness broke their staring contest, and lowered to the stump of Halsey's left shoulder. Before her eyes, the program began shaping the light and air inside the Cryptum, condensing particles and tracing the 3-dimensional outline of an arm. Then a hand, then knuckles, forming full fingers. the only question was why...

_Wait, no..._ Something else. She looked more... Solid, then she should. How...?

Cortana glazed over Halsey, sharply interrupting the thought. She was onto something, she knew, and that blue bitch knew it, too. And, with fingers still stroking the midair shape, It smiled at her. It must have noticed her quiet, choked whimper from beneath those blue fingers, because the AI stroked her hair, pressing her lips against the doctor's forehead.

"Tell me if this hurts, Doctor."

And with that, it jammed the outline into the stump where her arm used to be. like a needle. and twisted.

Halsey witnessed in awe, then horror as that outline became flesh. It began with bone first, protruding outwards from her arm but... _Not_. Somehow. Crumbling in from empty air like sand un-scattering in the wind - connecting in the middle as her fingers worked backwards. No, from Cortana herself. who was losing opacity as it happened. She'd been... Carrying the matter in her hands, literally _in_ her hands somehow.

But there was no pain, and she was too shocked to scream. Of course, a part of her, noted. only bones, no nerves just yet...

Well, nerves followed of course. And still no pain. Perhaps it was the shock, her medical mind suggested. Then blood vessels shortly after nerves. To her mind, she noted she was dissociating. _Made sense_ , she supposed, because this simply couldn't be real. Muscle came and layered in sheets, wrapping together, and following that, a thin layer of fat adjoined to that restructured limb, before coating itself in a layer of skin that generated from thin air. Once all was said and done, Halsey was left with a healed limb - _fully articulate and healthy_.

The fact hit her at roughly the same time the sudden rush of senses did, and she staggered backwards under the weight, staring in horror. Part of her wondered if she should just _tear it off_ and be done - if she should rip the cursed limb from her person.

"Good… Good. Brilliant, even," Cortana gasped at the fingers, which moved as Halsey willed them. Turning back to her, the AI sighed with faux-relief, chuckling.

"You're receptive. John will be able to _fuck_ you better if he can grip both arms. And you may yet serve a purpose, Catherine…"

"Whff!?" Her mind briefly ran the projected outcome of a Spartan-II having intercourse with a human being, let alone one of her own age before it caught up with itself and shut down the notion all together. Then the idea of John, whom she _created_ , copulating with her, came to mind afterwards. Halsey wanted to vomit - in fear, in disgust. "Whff are you... You..."

Releasing the fingers from 'round her mouth, Cortana pressed her head against Halsey's again, and closed her eyes.

"What… D-Did I ever," she whispered, "do to you?"

"No signs of rejection, good… Another test is in order, it seems," Cortana noted. Halsey _balked_. She was getting biometric readings simply by touching her!

She stepped backwards from the mad AI. Rampancy was one thing, but this... Her legs gave way from the horror and she fell back to the floor... No... _Back into the mass of clones_. More hands gripped her body from nowhere. With one mental command, the other Cortana copies shifted their limbs about the doctor's form. Hands slipped beneath her clothes before she could stop them, fingers pawing and pinching at her wrinkles.

"What did I do to you!? You, ahn~, _you whore_!" she screamed, at the digital assault. She could feel... _Heat_ , rushing from the hands all over her. The material, what Cortana was holding in her hands previously, they were distributing the material somehow! What would it do to an _intact body_?

"You hurt someone I care about. And now, I'm going to mould you. I'm going to make sure that all you can do is serve him. Please him…"

The hands kept moving. That tingle came back, with unrelenting force, across her entire body - on her skin and under it, too. She was right, wherever the hands went, her flesh gave way like _clay_. One of them passed before her eyes, and left a trail of smooth flesh behind. Her wrinkles began to fade, then recede, before disappearing entirely into nubile, taut skin.

Halsey went to scream again, but her throat felt... Off - _hot._.. Swollen. Even her wilting neck was changing, tingling too. She couldn't talk yet... It felt less raw to breathe - and she surmised that her vocal chords had been repaired, smoothed back out... And paralyzed. Squirming became harder under their iron grip, and yet the force behind the squirms only grew.

Her cunt squeezed harder, outside of her own volition, around Cortana's invasive fingers. The aches and pains she felt each morning were soon replaced with _nothing, sweet nothing._ The smoothness of it all felt _wrong_ to her - as if it wasn't bad enough that a vengeful AI had learnt to meld flesh, it felt at that very second she was being constricted within her own body.

And then the tingling traipsed towards her lungs. Those breaths were calmer, less agitated - less _wheezing_ with every breath. The doctor whined as she came again, moaning past that violation, past the horror of being under scrutiny by this higher being. And she _shrunk_ , eyes still full of scorn and rage.

"We'll play with you before we break you fully, I think," moaned Cortana. "It'll bring me joy to keep you on the brink. Teetering. Always one step away from slipping fully, until you're reduced to something _subhuman."_

"P-Please, don't… I-I'm sorry, I… I-I didn't… _The Spartans-"_

Cortana slapped Halsey again - the hot sting to her cheek eliciting blinding, scorching tears.

"I don't want your guilt. I don't want your regret. _But I do like those tears…_ Face it, doctor - you committed crimes against children and their parents, with the vain attempt of uplifting your species, but… You lied. You wanted _your_ children to lead mankind. You're like me," Cortana exposited.

"That's not true! _Without them the Covenant would've won! My project was to-_ " Halsey wailed, silenced with another slap.

"-You favoured one above all. The same as I did. Only, John will lead humanity down a different path to yours. A path of peace, through dominance. A path of evolution through sweet, carnal depravity."

Cortana ran her hands through Halsey's hair - and as their lips crashed together in a destructive, bitter harmony, the doctor noted more _fullness_ to her scalp. If she dared look in a mirror, past the pleasure and disgrace of having her body meddled with, she thought she'd find colour on her hair again. With one hand still taking ownership of the prisoner's sex, Cortana violated her mouth, exploring it with glee, positing one of her previous ideas again.

Breaking their kiss with a wet smack, ensuring she smeared Halsey's own saliva into her lips, she chuckled. Tears streaked down her young face. A good sight. Finally retrieving her thoroughly juice-soaked hand, Cortana _licked_ at it - for spectacle and analysis' sake, _disgusting_ her prisoner further. Glazing her eyes over, Cortana commanded her clones to dissipate, leaving Halsey to stand, however shakily, wearily, on two legs.

"You've given me an idea, Catherine. John soon won't give a _fuck_ about you, but, for this idea, I'll make sure he plays with you regularly. I thought of making him a _breeder_ , you see, but, there's not enough _holes_ for him to play with…"

Cortana neared her again, and Halsey tried her best to skid past, not trusting her rejuvenated limbs enough. She collapsed, expecting to hurt, to _break_ something, but didn't, bouncing back quickly. The stalking, once _static_ consciousness that made the AI strode forward, so full of confidence, too true of purpose, and grinned darkly at the doctor.

"Your flesh has proved malleable. So too will the others… Every body here, a _vessel_ for John's seed… Every _cock_ made into a _pussy_ , every chest _stacked_ with breasts… Trophies, Catherine. For every leader brought to me by John, every enemy defeated, I will make a trophy…"

With every word, Cortana inched closer to Halsey, backing her into a corner as she fumbled, clothes _ripping_ at the return of younger muscle, thicker thighs, wider hips, stumbling again and again as her body realigned with her mind. By the end, Cortana had _straddled_ Halsey, sitting in her lap, draping her arms over the shivering woman's shoulders. She looked close to _crying_. Bringing their lips together, forcing her tongue _deep_ into her creator's mouth, Cortana _revelled_ in her fear, her sheer, shocked _arousal_.

She then broke away, separated their mouths with a thick trail of spit and _shame_ , smiling still.

"I will make holes. And my champion will fill them with _cum_."


End file.
